Topic: Right, advice on how to reinforce atheism in my children?

liberated

Hey berbs, I definitely +1 to Walking with Cavemen. I made the video in my signature 'Evolution for muslims' which explains evolution in fairly simple terms.. I think.. with the use of a lot of pictures, etc. If you want to learn about it you might find it worthwhile to check it out

Heyjustlooking

Any and all science and western philosophy books but they are children so I won't get too worried about it as long as you teach them basic morality of how to be good and all that then later on in their lives, they can make an educated conclusion on their philosophical position.

"The ideal tyranny is that which is ignorantly self-administered by its victims. The most perfect slaves are, therefore, those which blissfully and unawaredly enslave themselves."

Nour

Carl Sagan's Cosmos would be VERY good for them, IMO. I read the book in HS and we watch the tv series at school. I found it very fascinating. Also there is a movie called 'The Miracle of Life' which was one of the very first movies to show a developing foetus taken from inside the womb with those tiny cameras. It showes the entire process from the egg leaving the ovarie to the sperm seeking out the egg and the entire process of life from zygote up to birth. This would be good for your older child but probably be beyond your little ones' understanding. Check to see if your local library has a copy. I saw this when I was a young child in the early/mid 80s so it's quite old now but still good.

zoomi

Look, here's what you do-- you buy a handgun and write "Religion" on it (you'll probably want a large-frame automatic for this purpose). You also write "Atheism" prominently on a bowl/plate which is used exclusively to serve their favorite meal. Then you hire someone to come into your house, preferably a homeless foreigner, with the gun marked "Religion" (only one round in it) and shoot the kid's favorite stuffed animal. Then you smash the "Atheism" bowl/plate over their head, and also stab them in the chest with a knife marked "Atheism is way cool, kids". Then you put the body in a bag labeled "God", throw it in the trunk of your car, and drive the kids out to a remote wooden area, and hand them shovels that say "Secularism" on them and make them dig a grave. In the meantime, smash the dead stuffed-animal killer's teeth out with a hammer that says "Berbs is always right" on it, then cover the body with lime to aid decomposition (especially make sure to get the head and hands), fill the grave with dirt, and lay down some squares of grass you previously obtained from the same area, and toss some leaves and twigs on top. Then wash out the trunk of your car, and set the whole car on fire.

That'll teach 'em.

hahah that just made my day (night)

zoomi

Seriously though, this is why religion works -- it's easy answers, which appeals to children and their sense of fantasy, fairytale, and magic. Religion is a fairytale for grownups in which the good people all "win" and the bad ones go to hell.

I think its probably just best instead of presenting your children with atheism per se, expose them to all the options out there, and let them decide for themselves as they get older. Faced with all the choices, they will probably realize that there's so much out there and that it is all mostly nonsense. (Throw some egyptian myth and greek myth in there just so they get the point). I'd try to explain why you believe what you believe I guess, though when they're older I'm sure they will respect you for giving them all the options and the freedom to choose rather than just presenting your own views.

That being said, it must be rough to "compete" with a father who's probably forcefully cramming Islam down their throat. Is going to take a lot of patience, best of luck to you super mommy

BerberElla

I think I'm winning the war, took the kids for a pub lunch yesterday and got into a brief atheism joke discussion.

My eldest said "Put you hands up if you think god is real", to which none of my kids put up their hands, and then "Ok, put your hands up if you think god is fake", a resounding show of hands ensued.

My eldest then sang this ryhme to me:

Dashing through the sandWith a bomb strapped to my backI've got a nasty planFor Christmas in IraqI went through checkpoint ABut not checkpoint BThat's when I got shot up the assBy the US militaryOh jingle bombs, jingle bombsI think I got screwedWhere are all those virginsThat Bin Laden promised me?

Sir Wankalot

I think I'm winning the war, took the kids for a pub lunch yesterday and got into a brief atheism joke discussion.

My eldest said "Put you hands up if you think god is real", to which none of my kids put up their hands, and then "Ok, put your hands up if you think god is fake", a resounding show of hands ensued.

My eldest then sang this ryhme to me:

Dashing through the sandWith a bomb strapped to my backI've got a nasty planFor Christmas in IraqI went through checkpoint ABut not checkpoint BThat's when I got shot up the assBy the US militaryOh jingle bombs, jingle bombsI think I got screwedWhere are all those virginsThat Bin Laden promised me?

newsoul

There's a lot of stuff outside of the realm of science which I think it's important to get into their consciousness. I'm not sure if you are directly challenging Islam or are doing it indirectly when dealing with your children under the family circumstances. The very first thing I think we must get into the heads of our children IMHO is that we are all human and equal in our humanity and that there is no us and them. This is one of the most destructive concepts in Islam. I'm currently suffering the consequences of this training in my own children. The science stuff is great, but their conception of who they are in the scheme of things will influence how they deal with the world around them and their own self-concept. I think it is important also to make them aware of certain Islamic concepts, such as the aforementioned, and show them how negative they are for the individual and the world at large. I would consider it more important to debunk religion than to actively promote atheism, which is also a belief which may be right or wrong. Encouraging questioning and opening them up to an exploration of any and all ideas with the guidance of your insights well help them to become thoughtful and intellectual adults, and I imagine that is the ultimate goal.

"Religion is an insult to human dignity. With or without it, you'd have good people doing good things and evil people doing bad things, but for good people to do bad things, it takes religion."~Steven Weinberg

Saif Rahman

Richard Dawkins has said for several years that he would like to write a children's book about science. Apparently he has finally completed the task: The Magic of Reality: How We Know What's Really True is due out Oct. 4, 2011. The 288-page book will be illustrated by Dave McKean, and will discuss questions like:

What are things made of? What is the sun? Why is there night and day -- winter and summer? What is an earthquake? What is a rainbow? Who were the first man and woman? When did everything begin?

superomario

id focus on teaching them humanism and the value of every person and life and how nobody is superior to another no matter how much they think they are or claim they are. teach them about the absurdity of other religions not just islam and let them see how foolish it is on their own, let them learn and value science and the value of being critical and using the scientific method. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2nfXfTg92E

I love the video above it helps put the wonder of the world into perspective.

Mowser

id focus on teaching them humanism and the value of every person and life and how nobody is superior to another no matter how much they think they are or claim they are. teach them about the absurdity of other religions not just islam and let them see how foolish it is on their own, let them learn and value science and the value of being critical and using the scientific method.

+1 for teaching them Humanism and why the concept of God is logically flawed/impossible.

moi

When you are a Bear of Very Little Brain, and you Think of Things, you find sometimes that a Thing which seemed very Thingish inside you is quite different when it gets out into the open and has other people looking at it.

Quod Sum Eris

My reasons for suggesting these is that each one is child friendly or aimed at children. I loved all of these as a child and I think they helped me develop my sense of empathy.

Animorphs (the books not the TV show). It's a wonderful series for children, at least I thought so when they came out. I believe it's actually being updated and rereleased. It's about a group of friends who find a dying alien Prince who tells them their world is being invaded and gives them the ability to turn into whatever animal they touch. I credit this with my love of biology and wildlife.

Prehistoric Park. Walking with Dinosaurs/Beasts/Monsters/Cavemen and whatever else they have. Reasons should be obvious.

Doctor Who. This is something that has such a dedicated following from people around the world, huge numbers of fans both religious and non religious alike. Far as I can tell the Doctor is an atheist who shows a huge range of themes, dealing with the religious (at one point actually meeting the Devil and denying said Devil's existence) tolerance of others and the important of morality, learning and being wrong that is often completely void of religion yet so easy for everyone to identify with.

X-Men series from the 90s. I remember when this first came out and was captivated by it. It deals with racism, prejudice and the struggle for equal rights in a way for a child to understand. I was around five when I watched this and I still remember the impact of hearing Storm talk about how people fear what they don't understand and how different can be dangerous.

The Magic of Reality by Richard Dawkins. Came out recently. Got this for my sister's 9th birthday, fascinating read. Try and get the illustrated version, the drawings are pretty It may be a little beyond grasping at that age but if you read it yourself you'd find it simple to explain things to your children. It involves the evolution of life, where humanity came from, different religious creation myths and why some people don't have a religion, the importance of learning new things and is just a fascinating read. I would seriously advice it.

So, with the last as an exception, just my two cents from what I remember about things opening my own mind as a child.

`But I don't want to go among mad people,' Alice remarked. `Oh, you can't help that,' said the Cat: `we're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad.' `How do you know I'm mad?' said Alice. `You must be,' said the Cat, `or you wouldn't have come here.'

Quod Sum Eris

Also something else, the Invention of Lying written by and staring Ricky Gervais. Plot summery of the film is it's set in a world where humans never evolved the ability to lie. Just flat out honesty. Then one day, some wires get crossed in Gervais' character's brain and all of a sudden he can do what no one has ever been able to do before. He can lie. The only person in all of history, the only person on Earth who has the ability to say something that isn't. There are no myths. There are no fiction. It's a world of 100% honesty. So what does he do? He creates religion.

`But I don't want to go among mad people,' Alice remarked. `Oh, you can't help that,' said the Cat: `we're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad.' `How do you know I'm mad?' said Alice. `You must be,' said the Cat, `or you wouldn't have come here.'

moi

When you are a Bear of Very Little Brain, and you Think of Things, you find sometimes that a Thing which seemed very Thingish inside you is quite different when it gets out into the open and has other people looking at it.

When you are a Bear of Very Little Brain, and you Think of Things, you find sometimes that a Thing which seemed very Thingish inside you is quite different when it gets out into the open and has other people looking at it.